20 Support Cases for Using Social Media in B2B Marketing

The ubiquitous debate over whether or not social media is appropriate for B2B marketing is, frankly, getting to be quite tiresome. Though I will readily acquiesce that application of social media techniques within the B2B realm requires careful attention to a specific set of considerations, the bottom line is that all marketing (whether B2C or B2B) targets Real People. Real People are social. They enjoy conversations and value authentic relationships. Those are what well-executed social media efforts deliver.

I think the question is less about whether social media is appropriate and more about how it is most appropriately used. I wish I could provide accurate attribution to the concept of business-to-consumer vs. B2C or B2B - that's an idea worth pondering. (For more insights, read Chris Brogan's excellent post defining the difference (and similarity) between traditional B2C and B2B.)

There is so much to explore within this topic, but - for today - all I want to do is provide you with an arsenal of links to posts, reports, and videos that document and support the use of social media in B2B. Whether you're an in-house marketing director trying to convince your boss to spend some cash on social media, or a marketer-for-hire trying to convince your clients to dip their toes into the water; you'll find something in this list to bolster your case.

Most importantly, if you know of any great case studies, surveys, special reports, or random success stories involving B2B social media; please leave a comment below with all the details.

Thanks!

SAP Case Study via @JuntaJoeThis case study from Social Media Today outlines how SAP used a social community platform to boost engagement and saw "side effect" benefits in their brand and strategy development.

B2B Lead Gen via Social Media@brianjcarrollBrian Carroll breaks down the 6 social media lead generation steps used by a company profiled in a Marketing Sherpa case study. He also alludes to the personal business success he has experienced through social media participation.

Social Media for B2B from the Internet Advertising BureauA comprehensive (don't miss pages 2 and 3!) overview social media's role in the B2B arena. This article provides a great overview of the various tools, some great how-to tips, and a few brief case studies for additional reference and inspiration.

B2B Social Media Examples: Trucks to ElectronicsThe team at Social Media B2B provides some interesting case studies. This one is about trucking company Scania, but don't miss the links to additional case studies at the right of the page - more goodies there.

Behind the Scenes with the "Will it Blend?" VideosThe koroberi team shares a seven minute video interview with Blendtec's George Wright, VP of Marketing, and Kels Goodman, Video Producer. They reference their B2B successes from the wildly successful video campaign around the fourth minute.

Reaching B2B Customers with Chocolate-Covered BugsOf course, we have to share one post right from the Savvy archives - an overview of how Grasshopper (formerly Gotvmail) used a unique campaign in combination with social media tools to make a big impression with their entrepreneurial audience.

LinkedIn Group - B2B Social Media@diannahuffDo you want to get into deeper conversations on the topic of Social Media in B2B Marketing? Hop over to Dianna Huff's LinkedIn group to engage in lively discussions with other marketers in this space.

Comments

Great list, Jamie. As an addition to your list, we're posting detailed updates every 30 days covering the development of our B2B Twitter account, http://twitter.com/B2BOnlineMktg. Here are links to the first three:

Nice one Jamie - you do a great job bringing all this stuff together. We are shortly going to publish an 'anthology' of case studies, ie a detailed description of some of our B2B social media work to date. It's a mixed bag, but should be useful to people considering the same. I will send you a link when it's done [when the client has given us the OK!]

Thanks for the list. One client I worked with needed a very basic understanding of what the key elements of social media were? Just what was Twitter, or Facebook and why should I care. This, even before I could get to the needs. This article:

Thanks for the excellent overview. I would like to add these stats about social media use in b2b just to point out you are right by stating it is not a matter of whether they are appropriate. Because they are widely used.

You said it, Doug! With these insights, marketers can strike the perfect balance of content creation/promotion, registration, and lead nurturing. My interview with Marilou will provide more detail around those issues. Thanks for stopping. http://www.wyndhamgardenhamburgcc.com/

I would like to add these statistics about public networking use in b2b just to indicate you are right by revealing it is not a issue of whether they are appropriate. You can watch this video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0juIO7Y9gY

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